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History

The Department of History's purpose is to increase knowledge of human experience and provide students with opportunities to gain information about and learn methods for understanding their world in light of its past. In addition to offering these essential elements of a liberal education, the department trains professional historians and teachers of history and serves those who require knowledge of a period or aspect of history as background for their own specialized interests in other fields.

Faculty and students in the department participate in many of the University's interdisciplinary departments and programs, including American studies, African American studies, ancient civilizations, Asian studies, international studies, Latin American studies, and women's studies.

Undergraduate Programs

The department offers a Bachelor of Arts and a minor in history. Graduates of the B.A. program work in a variety of positions in business, education, public service, advertising, and journalism. Many plan further training in history, law, religion, library and information science, or social work.

History majors are encouraged to take courses in other fields that illuminate and expand the meaning of history courses and that introduce information and a variety of approaches to understanding how societies and cultures work.

For example, students majoring in history are encouraged to complete the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences General Education Program foreign language component by choosing a language that fits their interests in history. The history faculty particularly encourages study abroad programs that complement students' foreign area interests. Majors also are encouraged to improve their writing and speaking skills.

Bachelor of Arts

The Bachelor of Arts in history requires a minimum of 120 s.h., including 36 s.h. of work for the major. The program is designed for students with a general interest in history. Course requirements include a colloquium, which usually is taken during the sophomore year or the semester after the student elects a major in history. The required portfolio, which should consist of at least three papers the student has written while enrolled in history classes, is submitted to the student's advisor during the semester before graduation.

College Level Equivalency Program (CLEP) and Advanced Placement Program credit cannot be used as part of the history major. Transfer work that is equivalent to University of Iowa course work can be accepted toward the major, but at least 18 s.h. of work for the major, including the colloquium, must be earned at The University of Iowa.

Students must complete the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences General Education Program.

Undergraduate courses are divided into four areas: American history (prefix 16A), European history (16E), non-western world history (16W), and courses that have no area designation (016).

Students must complete 36 s.h. in history courses, as follows.

COLLOQUIUM

One of these: 

History majors take the colloquium as soon as possible after declaring their major. Every colloquium includes assigned papers; students must include in their history portfolio at least one paper from their colloquium.

OTHER REQUIRED COURSES

At least 6 s.h. of American history, including at least one course numbered 16A:100 or above
At least 6 s.h. of European history, including at least one course numbered 16E:100 or above
At least 6 s.h. of non-western world history, including at least one course numbered 16W:100 or above
At least 3 s.h. of pre-1700 history (see "Pre-1700 Courses")

A course taken to fill the pre-1700 history requirement also may be counted toward the requirement in American, European, or non-western world history.

HISTORY ELECTIVES

In addition to the requirements listed above, the major requires 15 s.h. of elective courses in history (the total may include the colloquium). History electives may include no more than two of the following: 016:001 Western Civilization I, 016:002 Western Civilization II, 016:003 Western Civilization III, 016:005 Civilizations of Asia: China, 016:006 Civilizations of Asia: Japan, and 016:007 Civilizations of Asia: South Asia. Electives also may include all other courses offered by the department numbered above 016:040, 16A:040, 16E:040, and 16W:040. No more than 18 s.h. of American history (prefix 16A) may be counted toward the major.

PRE-1700 COURSES

The following courses fulfill the 3 s.h. requirement for pre-1700 history. 

B.A. with Teacher Licensure

Students who wish to qualify or licensure to teach social studies in secondary schools must complete the major in history and must earn at least 15 s.h. in U.S. history (16A), at least 15 s.h. in non-U.S. history (16E and 16W), and 15 s.h. in a related area chosen from economics, geography, anthropology, psychology, sociology, or American government. Courses taken as part of the history major, including Colloquium for History Majors (numbered 16A:051, 16E:051, or 16W:051), may be counted as part of the 15 s.h. in U.S. history and the 15 s.h. in non-U.S. history required for certification.

Students also must complete College of Education professional education courses required for teaching licensure. Not all political science courses count toward certification to teach American government. Course content must center around the American political system or American political issues.

For information about the Teacher Education Program (TEP) or the secondary social studies education program, consult the social studies program coordinator at the College of Education.

Four-Year Graduation Plan

The following checkpoints list the minimum requirements students must complete by certain semesters in order to stay on the University's Four-Year Graduation Plan.

Before the third semester begins: at least one-quarter of the semester hours required for graduation

Before the fifth semester begins: three courses in the major (including Colloquium for History Majors) and at least one-half of the semester hours required for graduation

Before the seventh semester begins: four more courses in the major and at least three-quarters of the semester hours required for graduation

Before the eighth semester begins: three more courses in the major and submission of the portfolio of written work to the student's advisor

During the eighth semester: enrollment in all remaining course work in the major (two courses), all remaining General Education courses, and a sufficient number of semester hours to graduate

Honors

The requirement for entry into the history department's honors program is the same as that for entry into the University of Iowa Honors Program: a cumulative University of Iowa g.p.a. of at least 3.33. Through its honors program, the department provides outstanding students with opportunities to enhance their history major in several ways.

The most significant part of the honors program in history is the honors thesis. The thesis is an extended research paper (30-50 pages), usually completed during the spring semester of the junior year or fall semester of the senior year. Research for the thesis is done under the supervision of a faculty member who specializes in the field in which the student undertakes his or her research. Students register for 3 s.h. of 016:091 Honors Seminar and 016:092 Honors Thesis in each of two semesters. The 6 s.h. count toward the total number of hours needed for the history major.

Minor

The minor in history requires a minimum of 15 s.h. in history courses, including 12 s.h. in advanced courses taken at The University of Iowa. For the minor, all courses numbered above 016:080, 16A:080, 16E:080, and 16W:080 are considered advanced. Students must maintain a g.p.a. of at least 2.00 in the minor. Course work in the minor may not be taken pass/nonpass.

Graduate Programs

The department offers a Master of Arts and a Doctor of Philosophy in history. The graduate programs prepare students for occupations such as high school or college teaching, publishing, commercial research, foundations and nongovernmental organizations, and government or other public service. With additional specialized training, students of history become qualified for careers in archival work, library work, museum work, or historical site preparation and display. Some students enter the joint program leading to degrees in both law and history (see "Joint Law and Graduate Degree Programs" in the College of Law section of the Catalog).

Students interested in graduate work should obtain a copy of the current Guide to Graduate Study at The University of Iowa from the Department of History office. The guide is revised every spring to include the latest faculty listing, research interests of faculty members, detailed regulations on study toward advanced degrees, and other information for prospective students.

Master of Arts

The Master of Arts in history requires a minimum of 30 s.h. of graduate credit and is offered with two options: one for students who plan to work toward the Ph.D., the other for students who do not. The two plans differ mainly in their concentration in fields: the Ph.D. track emphasizes development of research capabilities culminating in the essay; the non-Ph.D. track stresses breadth of learning.

The M.A. with Ph.D. track requires completion of a research essay. Students must earn at least 24 s.h. of the required 30 s.h. in Department of History courses, including at least two seminars, or one seminar and one readings course. One seminar or readings course must be taken in each of the first two semesters of residence. Students must earn 12 s.h. in the area of their essay topic and at least 6 s.h. in a second division, including either a seminar or a readings course.

The essay in the major division must be based on original research and should be approximately 10,000 to 15,000 words long. It usually begins as a term paper for the seminar in the major division and is completed the following semester under the supervisor's guidance. The finished product should emulate the character of articles in learned journals, just as the Ph.D. dissertation takes the form of a full-length scholarly monograph.

Requirements for the M.A. with non-Ph.D. track are similar to those for the Ph.D. track program. Students earn 24 of the required 30 s.h. in history. They earn 12 s.h. in one major division of history and must include at least one readings or seminar course. They earn an additional 12 s.h. in history by taking 6 s.h. in each of two other divisions of history, or 6 s.h. in one other division of history and 6 s.h. in a related department. The additional 12 s.h. in history must include at least one readings or seminar course.

After completing these requirements, or during the semester in which they will complete them, M.A. students must take an oral and written comprehensive examination in their major division.

Doctor of Philosophy

The Ph.D. requires at least 72 s.h. of graduate credit, including credit for work done for the master's degree.

Students who earn the M.A. with research essay at Iowa are admitted to the Ph.D. program on the favorable recommendation of the examining committee. Students who earn an M.A. at another university must meet the admission requirements of the Graduate College and the Department of History. They must submit a writing sample, such as a seminar paper or an M.A. thesis. They also must take a research seminar during their first two semesters in residence at Iowa.

Ph.D. students must complete at least eight 200-level courses of 4 s.h. each, taken in research seminars (not fewer than three) or graduate readings courses. At least five of the eight courses must be completed before the student takes the comprehensive examination. Courses taken at the M.A. level may be counted toward this requirement. The student also must take a graduate course in the philosophy of history, historiography, or methods of historical research.

The department has no general language requirement for the Ph.D., but the supervising faculty member may require the student to demonstrate a reading knowledge of one or more foreign languages and proficiency in the use of other study tools. Students may not complete the comprehensive examination until these requirements have been met.

The comprehensive written and oral examination covers three distinct fields, two of which must be in a major division that is chosen from the following divisions.

The ancient world
Medieval Europe
Europe, early modern
Europe, modern
Russia and the former Soviet Union
United States
Latin America
China
Japan
India
Africa

Students may construct another field, subject to approval by the comprehensive exam committee.

The third field must be a division outside the student's major division or in a related department outside history. The committee may define and delimit the individual fields for examination. It may also set, separately for each field, the character of the written portion of the comprehensive examination, which may take the form of a syllabus, a critical bibliography, a topical paper, or any other form or combination of forms that the committee deems suitable. The oral portion of the comprehensive examination focuses on issues and problems arising from the examination papers.

The candidate must submit to the dissertation committee a written prospectus for the dissertation no later than the semester following completion of the comprehensive exams. The committee consists of at least five members, including at least one member from outside the department. It considers the prospectus and may approve it, reject it, or require its revision. When the dissertation is completed in final form, the committee administers the final examination for the doctorate, a formal oral defense of the dissertation that usually lasts two hours.

Admission

Applicants must meet the admission requirements of the Graduate College; see the Manual of Rules and Regulations of the Graduate College or the Graduate College section of the Catalog.

Applicants must submit academic transcripts and Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test scores. They also must submit examples of original writing to the history department, such as a term paper, a seminar paper, or an honors thesis; letters of recommendation from three persons familiar with the student's past academic work; and a one- or two-page personal statement of the applicant's purpose in taking graduate work. All application materials are due by January 15 for entry the following August.

Facilities

The University of Iowa Libraries has unusual strength in all aspects of U.S. history. The Main Library houses the Henry A. Wallace papers and related collections, the Iowa Women's Archives, and other unique materials. In European history, special strengths include the fine collections of French and English materials. The State Historical Society of Iowa in Iowa City and the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum in West Branch also hold valuable research materials.